1. This Weekend: Dog Park Closed for Wizard of Oz; Free
movies; free horse shows; MPNCPC Cleanup at Walgreens
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Following the Yellow Brick
Road are (L to R) Greg Carlson as the Cowardly Lion, John Tichenor
as the Scarecrow, Rachel Wagner as Dorothy, and Robert Moorhead as
the Tin Man. "The Wizard of Oz" runs August 10-19 at Woodminster
Amphitheater in Oakland's Joaquin Miller Park.
- The Wizard of Oz at Woodminster
Amphitheater: August 16, 17, 18 and 19th -- all shows begin
at 8 pm. Tickets are $23-$36 Chevron has increased its subsidy of
free tickets for kids. On each night EXCEPT SATURDAYS an adult may
bring two kids, 16 or younger free with each adult ticket
purchased. On Saturdays it is one free kid with each adult. ($2
discount seniors). Twenty three dollars for a family of three is
cheaper than the movies!
For details, call 531-9597.
- Joaquin Miller Dog Park Closed this weekend; reopens
Monday, August 20: Regular users know that the off-leash
play area for dogs in Joaquin Miller Park doubles as a parking lot
for Woodminster Amphitheater. Consequently, the play area closes on
weekends when productions are held at the Amphitheater. The Dog Park
was closed this past week and will reopen by 10 am on Monday, August
20 (as you know, this is a pilot project, and O'Dog and the City are
experimenting with different closure schedules during the Musical
Theater Season). To volunteer to help with closing and reopening,
contact.
- End of Summer Roundup at Oakland
City Stables, Saturday, August 18, 10 am-2 pm: Stop by 13560
Skyline Blvd. for an afternoon of horse and rodeo demonstrations
featuring Los Charros, Las Escaramusas, Mexican Dancing Horses and
more! Don't miss this crowd-pleaser for adults and children alike,
as expert handlers showcase their skills in roping, reigning,
vaulting and dressing real horses! FREE!
- Metropolitan Horseman's Association Dressage Show
- Sequoia Arena, Joaquin Miller Park, Saturday, August 18 9 am
- For details, contact Show Manager:
Judi Bank,
510-531-5449.
- Free Workshop on Mortgage Loans, Saturday, August 18 10
am - 12:30 pm -- North Oakland Senior Center, 5714 Martin
Luther King Jr. Way, Oakland (entrance and parking through the gate
on 58th Street). Did you get the loan you wanted? Can you afford it?
If you have an adjustable rate mortgage, do you kow how much your
payments will increase? Do you feel like your were scammed?
Housing and Economic Rights Advocates and the Walter and Elise
Haas Foundation sponsor a free workshop and individual loan document
review clinic. Space is limited. Call 271-8443.
-
 Free
Moonlight Movies in the Park, Shrek 2, Saturday, August 18 at
Redwood Heights Recreation Center --
3883 Alison Avenue (Redwood Road & Highway 13). Bring
blankets, chairs, and warm clothes.
If you
have any questions, please call the center 482-7827 or email
Center Director Breht Clark.
Visit the
website
www.moonlightmovies-inthepark.com
for information about this event and movies in the park at other
sites.
-
 Little
Miss Sunshine at Free Old Oakland Outdoor
Cinema on August 18: The road
trip antics of the dysfunctional Hoover family in Little Miss
Sunshine will be the feature presentation on August 18. Prior
to the feature presentation, the short film Angels and
Wheelchairs by Oakland filmmaker Anthony Lucero will be
screened. The series transforms Ninth Street between Broadway and
Washington into an outdoor cinema with movies beginning at dusk,
limited seating is available; filmgoers are encouraged to bring
their own chairs and blankets. For details, call the
Oakland Film Office at 238-4734.
- Maxwell Park NCPC Neighborhood
Cleanup Sunday, August 19:
The Maxwell Park NCPC has
moved the regular cleanup on the area around Walgreens to the THIRD
Sunday every month. They will be doing trash cleanup, weeding, and
spreading mulch this Sunday, August 19, from 9:00 am until 12:30
pm or so. All welcome! Meet in the Walgreens parking lot. They are
especially looking for someone with a pickup truck and for people
with wheelbarrows so that they can move mulch from the pile on
Courtland to other parts of Redding (High-Birdsall). Please
Jan Hetherington know if
you can help with this. Other tools, gloves, vests. etc. will be
available.
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2. August 29 Meeting on Proposed Changes to City Laws Re Dogs |
 A
year ago when our office proposed adding the dog park at Joaquin
Miller Park, we recognized that the wording of the City's ordinances
concerning dogs and dogs in parks was difficult to understand. We
committed to coming back in the fall with a revision that would
include updates to make Oakland's ordinance consistent with new State
laws as well as be easier to understand. We are interested in feedback
from the public prior to presenting the ordinance to the City and are
hosting a meeting with the City's Animal Services Department
at the Dimond Branch Library, 3565 Fruitvale Avenue, on Wednesday,
August 29 from 7 - 9 pm.
Highlights of what we are proposing:
- Prohibition for leaving dogs unattended in vehicles under
conditions that endanger the health or well being of a dog (tracking
new state law, as of January 1, 2007)
- Requirement that dog guardians pick up ("pooper scooper"
requirement) after their dogs on public or private property, other
than their own private property.
- A 15 minute "grace period" for dogs left unattended and attached
to any stationary object on public property (State law provides no
grace period, and considers dogs left unattended in these
circumstances as "at large" dogs, subject to impound).
What we are not changing is the
requirement that all dogs must be leashed and under the control of the
dog handler at all times. This week, we read of several
incidences of dogs running loose who attacked other dogs being walked
on leash by their dog owners. If you leave your dog off-leash on your
property, you must ensure that your dog is contained in a sturdy
fenced off area. Dogs who attack other dogs or people may be
identified as "potentially
dangerous and vicious" and the dog owner may be subject to fines
and stiff regulations.
If you cannot attend the meeting, please forward your comments to
Sue Piper in our office. |
3. More Green News: Plastics Industry Law Suit, Reusable Shopping Bag
Contest
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-
 Plastics
Industry Brings Law Suit: Last week representatives of the
plastics industry filed suit against Oakland on the premise that we
needed to study the impact of banning plastic bags on the
environment. One of their arguments was that the ordinance allows
compostable or biodegradable bags; they say such bags are a problem
for plastic bag recyclers. They are trying to use "green"
arguments, but:
- Less than 5 percent of plastic bags are recycled.
- Oakland and San Francisco regulations will require that
compostable corn oil, potato starch or other biodegradable
alternatives be clearly marked so they can be sorted out.
- Our expert witnesses told us that the variations in plastic
bags are the real problem in recycling them.
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These articles in Salon.com cover some of the problems and
make the argument why the preferable alternative is reusable bags.
The Council will decide on our legal response when we come back from
recess. Requiring an environmental impact study is clearly a tactic
to slow down implementation, but cannot stop the ordinance which is
effective in January 2008. I am intrigued by their openness in
saying that they hoped this suit would slow down other cities from
copying San Francisco and Oakland.
- Send us a picture of your
favorite reusable bag, tell us why it's your favorite, and get a
chance to win a $100 in shopping certificates from Oakland stores!
The Oakland ordinance to ban plastic bags, authored by
Council Member Nadel and I, is effective in January 2008. We and San
Francisco had originally considered adding a small fee like 5 cents,
but the plastics industry circumvented local laws late last year by
passing a state law preventing them for six years. Such fees have
reduced plastic bag use by 90 percent in Ireland, the first European
nation to pass such laws. What they found is that most people have
switched to reusable bags. We hope Oakland shoppers will switch to
reusable bags, too.
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4. Citizen's Survey: Proposed Second Hand Smoke Ordinance |
 City
staff has posted a
Citizen's Survey
on proposed additions to the City's smoking ordinance, focusing on
Second Hand Smoke. You can help us measure public concern by filling
it out.
When the Council returns in the fall, the September 11, 7:30 pm,
Public Safety Committee Meeting will consider additions to Oakland's
Smoking Pollution Control Act.
Proposed new protections include:
- No smoking in outdoor service areas, such as bus stops, ATMs,
cab stands, ticket lines.
- No smoking in outdoor dining areas such as sidewalk cafes.
- No smoking in recreational areas such as parks and public
trails.
- New protections for Apartment/Condo dwellers.
- Requires all units including balconies in new multi-unit
housing complexes be designated non-smoking.
- Requires landlords/condo sellers to disclose to prospective
tenants/buyers, whether unit is smoking or non-smoking, which
units allow smoking, and the smoking policy for the complex.
- Declare second hand smoke a nuisance allowing for private
party action against the offending renter/owner.
- No smoking in common indoor and outdoor areas of apartment and
condo complexes.
- No smoking in homes that are licensed Family Childcare center,
adult care or health care facilities at any time 24/7.
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5. Plan Now for Creek to Bay Day, Saturday, September 15 |
 Congratulations
to the Butters Land Trust in successfully raising sufficient funds in
just a few weeks so that they could purchase the large lot in the
center of Butters Canyon-- the heart of the new conservation area that
they've been working on since 2001. Butters Canyon is the headwaters
of Peralta Creek.>>
- Sign up Now for Creek to Bay Day, September 15:
Last year 1,030 volunteers participated in a range of Oakland Creek
to Bay Day
 projects
at 20 locations around the City: 5 tons of trash were removed from
Oakland's creeks and Lake Merritt; 207 cubic yards of non-native
green waste was removed from our riparian (creek) corridors to make
way for native plants to flourish; 250 storm drains were stenciled
with the message "No Dumping, Drains to Bay (or Creek)" to remind
people that our storm drains should carry only stormwater to our
creeks and the San Francisco Bay.
Oakland residents who participate in this event, which is held as
part of
International Coastal Cleanup Day, join thousands of volunteers in
all 50 states and 90 countries around the world in taking part in the
largest waterway and beach cleanup of the year.
District 4 has several major creeks
running through it: Sausal Creek, Temescal Creek, Peralta
Creek, Courtland Creek and their tributaries. If you are planning a
project in our district and would like help and support, please
contact
Jennifer Argueta in our office
and
the
Creek-to-Bay Watershed coordinator, 238-7611.
- Sausal Creek Quarterly Water
Qaulity Monitoring, Sunday, September 22, 9 am - Noon: Call
Nick Kirsh for details at 530-4490. Friends of Sausal Creek Field
and Nursery programs are on hiatus in August but restart in
September.
For details...
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6. Community Policing News: Bailey Fund, Measure Y Forum, Watch Out
for Catalytic Converter Thieves
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 <<NATIONAL
NIGHT OUT ON GEORGIA STREET: One of over 80 National Night Out
Parties in District 4 this week involving an estimated 3000
participants. Our thanks to Dreyers for their donation of ice cream
and U-Name It in the Laurel for getting our whistles done in time.
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Chauncey Bailey Memorial Fund:
Most of us are still stunned by the murder of this Oakland
journalist. The family has established a fund for his son and asks
that donations be sent to the Chauncey Bailey Memorial Fund, c/o
Bank of America Creekside Branch, 1188 Galleria Blvd., Roseville,
Calif. 95678, account number 2350941279.
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Training Exercises at Oak Knoll:
Throughout the month of August, the Oakland Police Department and
the Alameda County Sheriff's Office will be conducting training on
the Oak Knoll site. Tactical exercises will include the discharge of
paintballs, which may result in loud noises.
- Measure Y Forum at MSIC:
As promised, a written response to the questions posed on the
Montclair Safety & Improvement Council's (MSIC) list serv in advance
of last week's Measure Y Forum, is now availalble. It may be
accessed by going to our
website or to
Montclairsic.org . Additionally, the
Measure Y website has been updated with summaries of past
meetings, and a listing of upcoming meetings. The public is always
welcome to attend these meetings. The next meeting will be
August 20, 2007 in Hearing Room 1 at City Hall, 6:30 - 9:30 pm.
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7. Mailers on Delinquent Business Tax Accounts |
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As a part of the
City's ongoing efforts to identify and collect on delinquent Business
tax accounts, including rental businesses, Citywide Liens Tax
Compliance Section mailed approximately 8,900 notices in an attempt to
resolve these delinquent accounts. The notices are dated August 9,
2007 and the taxpayer will have (20) calendar days in which to
respond, pay and or resolve their accounts. The deadline to
resolve is August 29, 2007. All non-resolved accounts will
be forwarded to our Citywide Collections Section for further action.
All responses to these notices should be directed to Business Tax -
Customer Service Section, 250 Frank H. Ogawa Plaza. Suite 1320.
Please refer telephone inquiries to the Business Tax main
telephone number 238-3704. The taxpayer will be directed to
leave their information and they will receive a return telephone call
within (48) hours. |
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8. Earthquake Preparedness |
This week's Magnitude 3.2 near Holy
Names University (again) is yet another reminder that it's time to
prepare for Earthquakes:
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For Frequently Asked Questions About Our Retrofit Program
- Join or start a CORE group
on your block -- first step is to get to know each other and share
contact information. Learn more at the City's website for
Citizens of Oakland Respond to Emergencies (CORE).
- If you are already CORE trained, consider taking
additional trainings through
CORE or the
American Red Cross.
- Consider the following CORE
courses -- all require advanced registration:
- CORE Refresher (required for all 2003-2004 CORE graduates)
October 13, 9 am -1pm
- Disaster First Aid - September 22, 9 am - 4 pm
- Managing Stress During Emergencies - October 27, 9 am - 1 pm
- Managing Your Neighborhood Command Center Operations
Effectively, November 10, 9 am - 3 pm
- Invest in an automatic gas shut
off or gas interrupt valve. Fires from broken gas lines are
a high risk following a major earthquake. Know where your gas meter
is located and how to shut if off manually, if you don't have an
automatic shut off valve.
- Bolt bookcases, other tall,
heavy items to the wall -- injuries following a major
earthquake are primarily due to falling and flying objects. A great
resource is
72hours.org
- Even if you have retrofitted
your home, you might want to consider a professional inspection.
Some studies suggest that as many as
two thirds of retrofitted homes in Oakland do not meet today's
standards. Some earthquake insurance companies offer
discounts to homes that have been retrofitted.
- Our office is planning a special community meeting
on the new retrofit program for Wednesday, October 3, from 6
to 8 pm at the office of the Oakland Association of
Realtors, 1528 Webster. Please help us spread the word to your
neighbors and Oakland friends. Watch here for more details!
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Earthquake Fault and Liquefaction Maps and other information
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9. Summer Office Schedule
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Now that Richard Cowan, our chief of staff, has
returned from China, we will resume our usual Thursday office hours at
the Police Substation. We continue our regular Laurel office hours
(4173 MacArthur Blvd, 2nd floor) on Wednesdays from 4 to 6 pm or
Saturdays from 10 am to Noon. |
10. School
&Youth News: School Starts August 27, Registration at Middle Schools
Coming Up This Week, Homework Assistance at Libraries, Movies in the
Park
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Remember school starts before Labor Day again this year, August 27th.
New school sign funded by our Office's Capital fund grants for Laurel
School.
- Countdown to Back to School: At the District's
Instructional Leadership Retreat this week, State Administrator
Kimberly Statham noted that this school year, 146 public schools are
focused on preparing students for college, the workplace and life
and will serve mroe than 45,000 young people in the City of Oakland.
She also shared that since 2003, Oakland Public Schools have nearly
doubled the percentage of graduates qualified to enter the UC/CSU
system. Among Latino and African-American students that percentage
has more than doubled. This meeting was the kick-off of back to
school events, starting with the return of principals this week.
Middle school and high school students are required to complete
mandatory registration as follows:
- Bret Harte Middle -- 6th grade 8/22 9am -
Noon & 1- 4 pm; 7th grade 8/23 Noon - 6 pm; 8th grade 8/24 Noon -
4 pm.
- Montera Middle -- All grades 8/20 9 am-
3pm; 8/21 Noon - 6 pm, 8/22 9 am - 3 pm. New Family
Orientation, Wednesday, 8/22 6 pm.
- Skyline High -- held it's registration this
week.
For details about other schools...
- Seeking Safe Walk Monitor for
Bret Harte Middle School: The City is looking for someone
to serve as a Safe Walk Monitor at Bret Harte Middle School. The
work is for three hours daily, 7:30-9 am and 2:30-4 pm. Starting pay
is $13.38 per hour. Contact
Carmela Chase at 238-7992 for details.
- Help Our Children Prepare for
School: For several years now generous Oaklanders have
prepared backpacks filled with school supplies for low income
Oakland students. Maxwell Park NCPC activist is helping organize
this effort which will benefit several Oakland schools including our
own Allendale School. Volunteers to stuff the backpacks are needed
on Saturday, August 25th at 8105 Capwell
Drive, 10:00 am to approximately 2:00 pm. Distribution to youth at
Allendale will take place Monday, August 27th. We are in need of
volunteers. If you would like to participate, please let Barbara
Taylor 436-5253.
- Homework Assistance for Teens at Libraries:
Starting September 4, the Oakland Public Library will launch a free
drop-in Homework Assistance Program for teens, ages 12 to 18 years
old. Teens who want help in English, math, research and science from
an experiences volunteer tutor can come to one of six Oakland
libraries for assistance. no advance registration is needed: just
drop in on the days you want homework help to complete your
assignment:
- End of Summer Slam for Teens,
Wednesday, August 22: Sponsored by the Oakland Library's Teen
Services, the event will feature poetry slams by member of Youth
Speaks and music performed by BUMP
Records, two Oakland non-profit
youth organizations. Youth Speaks is one of the nation's leading
non-profit presenters of spoken word performances. BUMP Records is
part of BAVC (Bay Area Video Coalition), a media technology access
and training center. The Oakland Public Library's TeenZone, which
will host this party at the West Auditorium, 125 14th Street, serves
middle and high school youth in Oakland.
- Thinking Ahead -- Donate to Your
Neighborhood School through Safeway 10% Program -- Safeway is
once again doing it's 10% Back to Schools campaign for Safeway Club
Card and eScrip shoppers. Schools usually receive a 1-2% rebate, but
during this special promotion, Safeway shoppers can rebate 10% to
their favorite school by shopping at Safeway between July 18 and
September 4. If you are not enrolled in the Safeway e-scrip program,
click here. Supporters of Redwood Heights Elementary who are not
enrolled are encouraged to bring in their receipts to the school
office in the fall. The receipt's redemption code helps the school
claim the value of the purchases.
- Volunteer Story Tellers Wanted
for Library:
Books for Wider Horizons, a
program of the Oakland Public Library, is seeking volunteer
storyreaders to present weekly storytimes to preschoolers at
partnering Head Start and Oakland Unified School District centers
throughout Oakland. The storyreaders will help introduce children to
the pleasure of stories and inspire excitement about books.
The next series
of training begins on September 25 at the Rockridge Branch Library,
and extends through October 13, 2007, 6:15-8:15 pm.
Bilingual volunteers are needed, especially in
Mandarin, Cantonese,
Spanish, Tagalog, and Cambodian.
Interested participants
must complete a comprehensive 7-session training to learn the art of
story reading from Gay Ducey, a Children's Librarian at the
Rockridge Branch, and a professional storyteller whose talents have
been featured on The Mr.
Roger's Show. For details,
call Books for Wider Horizons at 238-7453.
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11. More Community News: Book Readings, free movies and more
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- Neuropsychiatrist Louann
Brizendine reads at GGP on Wednesday, August 22: the author
of The Female Brain reads
from her book on Wednesday, August 22 at 7 pm at a Great Good Place
for Books, 6120 La Salle Avenue in Montclair.
- "Once in a Red Moon",
Monday, August 27-Tuesday, August 28: $13 for adults ($10
youth/senior/student).
Purchase advance tickets by calling 336-7373.
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-
 Get
Outdoors. Give Back. Volunteer to Improve Joaquin Miller
Park-Saturday October 6 through Sunday, October 7:
Volunteers for Outdoors-California (V-O-Cal), the City of Oakland
and my office are organizing a camp out and volunteer trail
stewardship weekend in Joaquin Miller Park, as part of the ongoing
work of our Joaquin Miller Working Group. Help create safer trail
connections using hand tools, enjoy great fun, tasty food and
evening entertainment for teens and adults. Volunteers camp for
free Friday and Saturday nights. Camping is optional and you can
participate for one day, but we encourage you to come for the entire
weekend.
Register online.
- Help Clean Up Beaconsfield Canyon: Workday on
Saturday, August 25, 9 am to Noon. Help restore one of Montclair's
hidden treasures -- Beaconsfield Canyon (between Ascot and
Chelton). Despite years of neglect, several native species have
survived in the canyon, including the rare black cottonwood.
Volunteers meet the last Saturday of each month to help them along
and rid the canyon of non-native invasive plants. A beautiful creek
at the bottom is in the early stages of restoration. Meet at the
bottom of Beaconsfield Place -- second street on the right as you go
up Chelton from Ascot. Bring work gloves, long pants, hat and garden
tools if you have them. Other upcoming work days: September 15 and
29. For more information, contact
Richard Kauffman at 531-1237.
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12. Save the Date: Summer Street Fairs & Festivals
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- Melrose NCPC's Annual Block
Party - Saturday, August 25, 11 am- 3 pm in front of Horace Mann
Elementary School.
-
 Art
& Soul, September 1, 2 & 3, 2007 --11am - 6pm, 14th & Clay
Streets.
$10 at door; $5 Youth 13-18; 12 & under free. Some of the 2007
headliners have been announced including Jeffrey Osborne,
Lucinda Williams, Against Me!, Jon B., Lefty Perez, Evelyn
"Champagne" King, John Handy, Tom Rigney, Housewives on Prozac, Ted
Leo and the Pharmacists, Pieces of a Dream with Regina Belle
and more.
For details...
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Labor Day with Latin jazz Great Pete Escovedo! Monday Sep 3, 2007 3
pm-6 pm: Alameda County Central Labor Council's annual
Labor Day Picnic,
MLKing
Shoreline Park, 7250 Doolittle Drive, Oakland. Free parking; $15
ticket, children under 12 free. Kids activities. Call 510-632-4242
ext 224 for more information.
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Salud! A Celebration of Latino Art, Health & Community, Saturday,
September 8, 10 am - 2 pm -- at the WCRC Gallery, 5741
Telegraph Avenue, sponsored by the Charlotte Maxwell Complementary
Clinic, the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, the Women's Cancer Resource
Center and The American Cancer Society. Food by La Cocina Poblana,
arts & crafts mercado, health information, entertainment and raffle.
For details, call 601-4040 x111.
- Maxwell Park's Annual Day in the
Park, September 15 -- from Noon to 5 pm. Lots of food, fun,
entertainment and children and youth activities.
If
you've got a business and you'd like to share it with the rest of
Maxwell Park at the upcoming Day in the Park event on September 15,
for just $25 you can have a table at the event so that you can show
others what you do! Contact
Krista Gulbranson, Event Corodinator, at 304-3575.
- Allendale Park NCPC Picnic
- September 19.
- Save the Dates
--Sundays in the Redwoods: Here's the perfect way to build
community and have a great time. Organize a pot luck with friends
and neighbors at one of the upcoming free concerts at the
Woodminster Amphitheater. Gates open at 2, concerts begin at 3 pm:
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Sunday, September 23 -
"Classical Sounds" featuring the Oakland East Bay Symphony,
conducted by Michael Morgan
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Sunday, September 30 -
"World Music Fest" featuring the John Santos Quintet with Papa
Mambo
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Sunday, October 7 -
"Gospel: A Joyful Noise" featuring Sunny Hawkins
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Sunday, October 14 - "The
Jazz & Neo-Soul Experience" featuring Goapele
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